Hughton, who was twice an FA Cup winner with Spurs in the 1980s, claims his No 1 priority is to return Newcastle to the Premier League at the first time of asking rather than delivering the famous trophy to St James’ Park for the first time since 1955.

Despite making seven changes, Hughton says he still fielded a side with the intention of progressing further in the FA Cup.

He said: "If you look at the team that started the game there are a lot of players were regulars anyway, like Danny Guthrie, Danny Simpson, Alan Smith, Fabricio Coloccini and Shola Ameobi, who needed the game.

"So I’ve got no regrets with the side that we played. We have got a lot of players who have played a lot of games already.

"The bulk of the side was experienced players and the supporters that came down will have been happy with the commitment the players showed

"But if we don’t play these young players when we have the chance how will we know if they are good enough.

"I thought we deserved to win. We will endeavour to our best and this is a cup competition we want to stay in.

"The league is the biggest priority and as soon as the cup comes around the excitement builds up. The most important thing is that we didn’t want to lose."

Hughton would not confirm whether The Toon will step up their attempts to sign Leeds United striker Jermaine Beckford, who has scored 19 goals this season, but the striker is expected to complete a £1.5million move this month.

The series of chances missed – mostly by the disappointing Fabrice Pancrate – must have left Hughton thinking he needs to ensure the deal for Beckford is completed quickly.

Shola Ameobi did not have any chances to miss for Newcastle and his approach play caused Argyle serious problems in the first half.

Newcastle came closest when Nicky Butt unleashed a dipping, 20-yard volley on 86 minutes that Romain Larrieu did well to scramble backwards and tip onto the crossbar.

Frenchman Larrieu, who made other impressive stop to deny Danny Guthrie in first half stoppage time, does not consider an 820-mile round trip to St James’ Park as an unwelcome distraction as Argyle try and haul themselves out of the relegation zone.

He said: "We were put under a lot of pressure, especially in the first half, but we coped with it really well. We were really resilient throughout.

"That’s what we need to give ourselves a start in every game. We believe we can move up from the bottom and we have kept positive.

"That’s three games unbeaten for us and to hold the Championship leaders will give us confidence we can carry on this run.

"We have turned it around but it’s only a start. The important thing for us is the league but to get the chance to play at St James’ Park will not be a distraction from what we have to do in the league.

"Not many footballers don’t want to play at St James’ Park. It’s one of the best stadiums in England so it will be something we will be looking forward to."